Filmmaker Gus Van Sant Offers Regional Teens a Unique Shot at the Spotlight with Casting Calls for 'Paranoid Park'

Filmmaker Gus Van Sant Offers Regional Teens a Unique Shot at the Spotlight with Casting Calls for 'Paranoid Park'

'No Experience Necessary' Try-Outs for New Independent Film to Take Place August 3 and 5 in Portland

PORTLAND, Ore., July 26 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, Portland's Lana Veenker Casting announced that locally-based filmmaker Gus Van Sant will hold open casting calls on Thursday, Aug. 3 (1 p.m.-8 p.m.) and Saturday, Aug. 5 (10 a.m.-6 p.m.) to fill starring and supporting roles in his upcoming independent film project, "Paranoid Park." The casting calls, open to males and females ages 14-18, will be held at the Ambridge Event Center (300 NE Multnomah, Portland, Ore., 97232), and aim to uncover fresh talent to effectively portray the real-life attitudes and emotions of high-school aged youth. Experienced actors are also welcome to audition, but no acting background is necessary to attend the two calls, which will serve as the primary casting process for the film.

The talent search for "Paranoid Park," which will be filmed and set in Portland, does not represent the first time that Van Sant has offered such an opportunity for young people in the region. The director employed similar casting tactics for his award-winning 2003 independent release, "Elephant." Featured actors in that film included Lake Oswego's John Robinson, who went on to a starring role in the 2005 major motion picture, "Lords of Dogtown," and other projects.

In addition to the August 3 and 5 calls, Lana Veenker Casting will soon announce an additional date to seek experienced skateboarders ages 14-30 and other extras in that same age range for the film, a "coming of age" story set partially in the skateboarding community. Filming is set to commence in October, with a wrap date anticipated in summer of 2007.

For up-to-the-minute information on that opportunity or the August 3 and 5 casting calls, interested parties may call the Paranoid Park Hotline at 503.222.2462 or visit www.myspace.com/ParanoidPark.

Source: Lana Veenker Casting

CONTACT: Karamy Muessig of Xposure Unlimited, +1-503-750-9041 or
karamy@xposureunlimited.com, for Lana Veenker Casting

-------
Profile: intent